


A Hero Amongst Cats

by templarsandhoes



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Fluff, Gen, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-30
Updated: 2016-03-30
Packaged: 2018-05-30 01:03:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6401596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/templarsandhoes/pseuds/templarsandhoes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cole found someone who desperately needs help: a kitten stuck in a tree. Alea Lavellan is more than happy to assist.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Hero Amongst Cats

Sitting at camp during the daytime was odd, to say the least. The Inquisitor and her companions generally only stayed at camp during the evenings and nights, but a too close-encounter with a bear left Iron Bull sidelined for a short while. Alea, Bull, Blackwall, Cole, Mason, and an elf known only as R, made their way to the campsite, where they could rest. Even with a large gash on his leg, Bull was still galavanting about the kill, bragging about how he delivered the killing blow. Several eye rolls later, they all arrived at the camp, and got settled in for an unexpected day of rest. 

Cole went wandering off, mumbling to himself. Blackwall and Alea sat near each other, him watching her intently as she cleaned her blades. Bull found himself some bandages and poultices, and with the help of Mason, one of his Chargers, started to patch himself up. It was unusual for anyone other that the Inquisitor’s Inner Circle to accompany her on missions, but R and Alea had grown up together in the same clan, and Mason wriggled his way into most missions. No one questioned why or how anymore. They all kept busy, sharing a laugh once in a while. Stripped of their armor, they were comfortably wasting the day away. Alea laid her head on Blackwall’s shoulder, his arm draped on her hips. She closed her eyes, reveling in this rare moment of peace, when suddenly, Cole appeared and started to shake her. “Alea, please. I need to help. I need your help so I can help!” 

“Cole, what’s wrong?” She cocked her head, scanning his eyes to try and read him. Useless, as always, but she always tried. 

“ _ Small. Vulnerable. Separated from Mother. Who will feed me? I’m scared, mother. _ ” He started. He tugged up on Alea’s hand, pulling her up from her sitting position. Blackwall stood up as well, ready to follow her into any danger. 

“Can you show me where to go?” Alea asked him. He nodded quickly, dragging her suddenly. Cole was fast, and Alea could keep up, but Blackwall was falling behind. 

“Slow down for an old man, will you?” He called after them. Alea let out a short laugh. 

“We have to hurry! He needs help!” Cole replied flatly, slowing as he approached a tall tree, with a seemingly infinite number of branches. He looked up, searching. His eyes widened, and pointed. “There!” Alea followed his finger to a small patch of orange sticking out amongst the green and brown. She cooed upon the sight. 

“Aww, don’t worry Cole, we’ll help.” She looked behind her to see that Blackwall was within a few feet of her, and the rest of her companions also followed. “Guys, who’s watching the camp?” They all looked at each other, realizing they might have made a mistake. 

“You guys might have been in trouble. So we came.” Iron Bull said, shrugging. She rolled her eyes. 

“I appreciate the concern. Now then.” She looked back up at the tree. Without looking back, she started again. “Bull. Give me a boost. No, wait your leg.” She quickly whipped around. Bull threw his hands up, exasperated. 

“What is up there, exactly?” Blackwall said, still not sure why they were there in the first place. 

“Him!” Cole said, pointing again. They all squinted their eyes. 

“Really? You freaked us all out for a lousy cat?” R said, his voice deep and rough. 

“Oh hush, he’s just a kitten. And he’s stuck, and needs our help. Right Cole?” Alea turned to Cole as she finished her sentence. 

“Yes. He just wants to come down, to see his mother,” he spoke softly as he pointed off to a broken down wall. Alea could just make out another patch of orange identical to the one in the tree, except bigger. 

“Well, then. Let’s help. R, give me boost, please.” She started to survey the branches above her. R rolled his red, intimidating eyes. He paced to Alea, grumbling in Elven as he moved his legs. He looked up with her, and they both pointed to a large, sturdy-looking branch. She started to unlace her boots, while R moved to a different spot underneath the branch. 

“Lea, why are you taking off your boots? I thought those made it easier to climb?” Blackwall questioned. 

“I move faster without them. Besides, when was the last time  _ you _ climbed a tree,  _ old man _ ,” she mocked. Iron Bull let out a loud laugh, and Blackwall smiled as he chuckled. “Alright, let’s help this little guy.” She said with a smile. 

“Ma nuvenin.” R was quiet when he spoke with Alea. He crouched down, holding his hands together and low to the ground. Placing her hand on his shoulder, she placed her foot into his hand. They steadied themselves, and then he effortlessly tossed her into the tree above them. She caught the branch they had agreed upon earlier, and she pulled herself up on top of it. Once she was successfully standing on the branch, she started to maneuver her way up and over to the helpless creature. 

“Ah, no way! Lee, that was amazing!” Mason called out. Always one to seek adventure, Alea laughed, knowing he would be trying to convince R to toss him into the tree next. 

“Years of practice, right R?” She said, balancing on a branch. 

“So the Boss likes to get rough. Didn’t know that. Blackwall, did you know that?” Iron Bull was looking suggestively at Blackwall, then looking back up to Alea. Blackwall let out a huff, and an eyeroll. 

Disregarding his comment, Blackwall looked up at Alea and said, “You two have a system for throwing you into a tree?” 

“It’s part of the ritual for when you come of age. You get some blessings, get your vallaslin, then, before it’s all over, you have to have your best friend throw you into the tallest tree and you have to scale it as fast as you can.” Alea stated, matter-of-factly, as she very carefully and deliberately moved around the tree. She was almost near the cat now, surprising everyone. 

“We were the best at it.” R joined in. His naturally flat tone made it easy to trick people. 

“What?! Chief, we should try that with the Chargers!” Mason was excited as he spoke, and Alea couldn’t help but laugh at her friend. 

“Yeah, I think she was kidding,” Iron Bull said. 

“We should still try it,” Mason scoffed under his breath. They all looked up when they hear a high pitched meow from the tree. 

“Oh, it’s okay da’len. I’m here to help, I promise” Alea cooed. The kitten was hesitant, and gave another meow. “Come here, da’assan.” The kitten started making its way to her. 

“You’ve got the cat, now how are you going to get back down, love?” Blackwall’s face was filled with concern. The kitten moved slowly into Alea’s arms, where she held him tight for a few seconds to calm him down. She moved the small ball of fur closer to her face, where she smiled and whispered endearments to him. 

“The same way I got up here, vhenan.” She adjusted herself so the feline was safely tucked into the crease of her elbow, her arm folded just tightly enough so he stayed put. Even with limited mobility of one arm, she still descended the tree in less than a minute, without one misstep. “Bull, you can reach. Grab him for me?” She asked as she sat on a sturdy, low branch. The lowest branch was still ten feet off the ground, but with the length of Iron Bull’s arms, he was easily able to reach up and take the kitten from her hand. Bull held the kitten with a delicacy he rarely showed, but did not surprise Alea. Before Bull could completely turn around, Cole was next to him, prying the kitten from his large, grey hands. Blackwall moved underneath the branch, figuring out if there was someway to help her down. She looks at him, and gives him a wicked smirk. “Catch me,” she whispered, her voice carrying down, putting Blackwall in a trance. He held his arms out, and she jumped down from the tree. Landing in his arms bridal-style, she let out a playful giggle. He pressed his lips to hers. She kissed him back, before she heard Cole again. 

“They say thank you.” He paused. “And so do I.” Alea walked over to the family of kittens and their mother. Giving a mew, presumably for thanks, she led her kittens away. 

“Dareth shiral,” Alea whispered, her smile full of compassion. She strided back towards her companions, most of which were already heading back to camp. Blackwall greeted her with a smile, and held his arm out for her. She gladly took it, his smile matching hers. Weaving her arm with his, they both walked extremely slow. 

“So. My lady, the Inquisitor, is also a hero amongst cats as well?” She let out a hum of approval. 

“Just doing what I can to make Thedas a better place.” Blackwall kissed the top of her head. They were within sight of the camp after only a few feet, and they could already hear Iron Bull’s plans on how he would retell the tale. 

“Hey Boss, we gonna put this in Red’s reports?” 

“I’m sure that’s exactly what Leliana wants to read; a report of how we let someone throw the Inquisitor into a tree because there was a cat.” Blackwall said dryly. 

“I think it was important.” Cole spoke up. 

“Then in the reports, it goes.” Alea assured Cole. They sat in front of the tents, soaking in what remaining daylight they had. 

“Could you imagine the fit Dorian would be throwing if he were here for this?” Bull said, his large body sprawled out on the dirt. 

“Yes I can. And let’s all be glad we didn’t have to see it.” Alea said. They all laughed, and continued to rest for the rest of the night. 

**Author's Note:**

> Mason and R belong to my friend, Matt. shout out to that gay ass for letting me borrow them for this little story


End file.
